F1: Mercedes Kills Controversial Partnership With Kingspan

Mercedes has killed its controversial partnership with Kingspan in wake of the criticism it received after the Saudi Arabian GP. The race weekend was the first time the sponsorship deal was revealed on the Mercedes W12 which is driven by Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas. Kingspan has links to the Grenfall Tower disaster where 72 people died in a fire that engulfed the entire building. Kingspan's products were used in the cladding on the building which contributed to the fire, though the company has continued to deny any involvement in the design or construction of the tower. 

Particularly, Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes were criticised for the branding, and even Grendel United that represents survivors and the families of the victims came out and said the announcement of the partnership "shattered" them. Mercedes team boss and 33 percent owner of the F1 team, Toto Wolff, came out with an apology letter at the time, but there was no indication that the partnership was going to end. But then UK's government minister Michael Gove also got involved and threatened to change the advertising laws in motorsport, which has culminated in the termination of the sponsorship deal. 

Kingspan's deal with the Mercedes F1 team was revealed only at the Saudi Arabian GP 

"The Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team and Kingspan today announced that they have mutually agreed to end their partnership," a statement from the Mercedes team said. 

"Announced last week, the new partnership included Kingspan chairing a new Sustainability Working Group for the team, and aimed to deliver carbon reductions through their leading-edge environmentally sustainable solutions for the team's future campus. However, both parties have subsequently concluded that it is not appropriate for the partnership to move forward at the current point in time, notwithstanding its intended positive impact, and we have therefore agreed that it will be discontinued with immediate effect," the statement added. 

Kingspan for its part has acknowledged the sensitivities at play. It said it was " deeply aware of the sensitivities raised in recent days, and so we have jointly agreed that it's not appropriate to move forward at the current point in time."

Lewis Hamilton admitted that he was not aware of the partnership and said he was aware of the incident related to Kingspan. He also admitted he couldn't do much as the car he drove did have its branding on it and left it in the hands of Toto Wolff, who was "sorting it out." He added that the only sponsor he brought to Mercedes was Tommy Hilfinger.